Apparatus for treating metal



27, 1940- H. CSANY! w 2,212,588

Armmus FOR mm'rme METAL Filed Dot. 7, 1936 3 Sheets-Shut 1 Fl .L

lNVENTOR HENRY C'SANYI ATTORNEY H. CSANYI 2,212,588

APPARATUS FOR TREATING METAL I I Filed Oct. '7, 1936 3 Sheots-Sheet 2 2 w M N ma n m m Ev, o Wm w \& W A 3 Y 5 W 3 B Aug. 27, 1940. H. CSANYI APPARATUS FOR TREATING METAL s Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Oct. 7/1936 I'IIIIIIII'III' IIIIIII'IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII14 9 a m s w m l 4 m :1 4 g A g/Egg w m i. n m lw .lwmw ITWW Z! flm/ v V//////// in WW h m s w h 4 3 5 WW G q. m- ////////fl my///// 1 m Q m INVENTQR HENRY CSANY/ BY WWW ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 27, 1940 PATENT APPARATUS FOR. ATING MET Henry Csanyi, Jamaica, N. Y., assignor oi. onehalf to Harry I". Wanvig, New York, N. Y.

Application October 'z, 1936, Serial No. roasts Claim.

This invention relates to method and apparatus for treating sheet and strip material, more particularly sheet and strip metal.

In the electro-plating of metal, especially sheet 5 metal, the sheets have been heretofore suspended in the electrolyte from clips and either held stationary for batch treatment, ormoved about to operate the process continuously. The sheets in this vertical position are frequently bent or curved as they move through the tank which disturbs the plating, and in any event the tanks must be very large for continuous operation and portions of each sheet are not satisfactorily plated. Another objection to the operation of such apparatus is that fumes and obnoxious gases almost invariably escape into the room, causing irritation to and impairing the health of workmen.

. Cine object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus for electro-plating metal stools which overcomes the aforementioned difficulties.

Another object of this invention is the provision or" a method and apparatus for treating 26 metal stock with a liquid by introducing the metal directly into the liquid at a point below the level thereof.

A further object is to provide for removing gases sticking to metal while such metal is mov- 3o ing through an electroplating oath.

Another object is the provision of a novel method, apparatus, and agent for cleaning plated metal.

These and other objects and advantages of my invention will be explained and will be more apparent trump. description of the embodiments thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig, 1 is a plan view, partly in section taken along the line l--i in Fig. 2, of an electroplating tank embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section through substantially the center of the tank shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 2 but illustrating the inletportion of the tank on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 4 is a foreshortened end elevation of the 50 tank taken on the line- 4-4 of Fig. 3 and illustrating a metal sheet-in section.

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view of apparatus for .processing sheet or strip metal continuously.

The invention has been illustrated as applied 55 to metal sheets but it is to be understood that the invention is also applicable to other forms of metal with suitable modification.

With reference to the drawings, more particularly Figs. 1-4, numeral it indicates an electroplating tank which may be made of any suitable material such as metal lined with asphaltum, designed to contain a quantity of electrolyte it. Sheet or strip material may be introduced into the tank below the level of liquid ii, and without. substantial leakage thereof, in through a stufing box it, and may be removed therefrom through a similar 'stuiilng box it. Suitable feed rolls such as pusher rolls it, it at the inlet and puller rolls it, ii at the outlet may be provided near the stumng boxes i2 and iii, and iii are preferably driven by power means such as the motor it. One suitable form of drive is illustrated, in Fig. l in which the motor it drives roll it directly, through the reduction gearing it and gear train 2t; Roll it in turn drives the go other upper feed roll it; by means of sprockets and the chain it. "Upper rolls it and iii are geared directly to lower rolls to and it, by the gears 22 and 23, respectively. Thus all four feed rolls are driven at the same, or a substantially are synchronized speed. Each pair of feed rolls may be suitably mounted in adjustable hearings or journal blocks, for adjustment toward or away from each other as is well understood in the art and are preferably connected to the negative pole till of a -source of electric current (not shown) The tank may be provided with a cover 2t, having overhanging edges iii, adapted to be placed over the entire top of the tank it, and provided with an outlet pipe it for carrying off any as gases or fumes inside the tank iii. Fixed to cover it, or merely overlying openings in the cover if desired, are two pairs of plates H, il and 2t, 28 made of suitable insulating material such as Bakelite or hard rubber. Each pair of an I these plates support a pair of anodes 29 for suspension in the electrolyte, the composition of the anodes depending on the kind of plating to be performed. The ends of anodes it are fixed to rods 3b, the anodes or each pair being spaced 5 from each other a. suitable distance to allow passage therebetween of the metal to be plated. The upper ends of rods at project through their respective plates 21, 28 and the exposed lengths of these rods below the plates are protected by tubular insulating memberstl, 32 made of suitable material such as hard rubber. Nuts 33, 34 may be threaded on the ends of rods 30 and tightened to hold plates 21, 28, anodes 29, and insulating members 3!, 32 in lfixed' relation.

, to provide a pair of Nuts 35 may be employed for connecting rods 3|) and anodes 29 to the positive pole of a suitable source of electric current (not shown). An electric motor 36 may be mounted;on a bracket 31 fixed to one of the plates 21, for driving shaft 38 and fan 39, to provide a constant circulation of the electrolyte To assist in guiding the sheet material through the stuffing boxes l2 and I3, I prefer to employ two pairs of guide rolls 40, 4| which may be journaled in the ends of brackets 43 also fixed to insulating plates 21 and 28. Because these rolls 40, 4| contact the metal beingplated, they are preferably constructed of some suitable material which will not be plated, such as Bakelite or hard rubber. Two distinct pairs of. anodes have been illustrated, and, although I do not wish to be limited to this embodiment of my invention, I have discovered that where metal being plated is subjected to the influence of two or more successive anodes, greatly improved results may be obtained by removing any gas accumulated on the metal surface during the first portion of the plating and subjecting the cleaned surface immediately to the action of the plating instrumentalities. One way to accomplish this is rolls 44, made of soft rubber or the like between the pairs of anodes 29. These rolls 44 may be journaled in brackets 45 fixed to plates 28 in a manner similar to guide rolls 4|.

It will be seen that my improved construction of electro-plating tank provides an effective cover 24, with all of the equipment inside the tank such as anodes, guide rolls, gas removing rolls. and agitator, suspended from the cover. This simplifies repairs which can be easily made by simply removing the cover 24 and the equipment carried thereby.

The pneumatic stuffing boxes 2 and I3 are substantially alike and are mounted in the wall of tank l0 extending in the same direction. A description of stuffing box l2, illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, will suffice for both, it being understood that the construction of stuifing box I3 issimilar thereto, Stufling box I2 is fitted to an elongated opening 46 in a side wall of tank below the level of the liquid N, and may be comprised of a pair of complementary pneumatic containers 41 and 48, made of soft rubber or the like, and inflated with air or other gas by means of the valves 49 and 50, respectively. An outer wall of each of the containers 41 and 48 may be supported by corrugated surfaces 5| on the supporting members 52. The opposite walls 53 and of containers 41 and 48 are pressed against each other under the pressure of the compressed air therein and provide a self sealing opening to admit a sheet 55 to the tank without allowing the liquid I to escape. Flanges 56 on supports 52 are wall of tank l0 and to a retaining means of bolts 58; retaining member 51 is provided with a central opening 51a to permit passage of a sheet 55. Pneumaticcontainers 41 and 48 are preferably formed with an L shaped cross section, with the shorter sections 59 and 60 between the wall of tank l0 and the retaining members 51. The pneumatic containers acting through member 51 and bolts 58 thus serve to hold the supporting members 52 tightly against the wall of tank ID. The walls 53 and 54 of containers 41 and 48 will be naturally curved at one side of the stuffing box to allow for easy insertion of the sheet55.- The shape of the pneumatic containers may, if desired, be suitably modified to accommodate other forms of material such as wire, rods, bars, etc.

.In the. operation of the above described embodiment of my invention, a sheet, plate, or strip of metal 55 to be electro-plated is started between the feed rolls l4 and I5 which flatten and smooth out any irregularities therein and push the sheet through stufling box I! into the tank Ill. The sheet moves continuously along a path through guide rolls 4|, between one pair of anodes 29, through rolls 44 for wiping off gas bubbles, between the second pair of anodes, and through guide rolls 40, out of the tank through stufiing box I3 and the puller rolls I6 and I1. Rolls |4, l5, l6, and H are preferably made of a material which is a good conductor of electricity to make a good electrical contact with the sheet being tr'eated.' The sheet which is thus the cathode,

the suit rubber of the pneumatic containers.

The sheet may then be dried, cleaned, bufied, and/or finished in any suitable manner.

As a precautionary measure, I prefer to employ a trough 6| surrounding the outside of the tank below the stuiiing boxes l2 and I3, inorder to catch any electrolyte which may escape, if the pneumatic containers of the stufiing boxes should be punctured or deflated.

During the electr'o-plating process, a rapid circulation of the electrolyte, greatly enhances the speed of plating. I have found that it is preferable to operate the agitator fan 39 at such a speed that the circulation within the tank is at least 1 foot per second. Thatis, the rate of flow of a given portion of electrolyte from one portion of the tank to another should be at least 1 foot per second to obtain the best results. A slower circulation can, of course, be employed but proportionately decrease the thickness of the plate for a given time, or increases the time'required to form a plate of a given thickness.

My invention makes possible the easy covering of an electroplating or other tank to prevent the escape of fumes and gases into theroom. A further and important advantage is the elimination of clips or the like which as heretofore employed always-left a certain area of the sheet unplated. These unplated or imperfectly plated portions must almost always be removed and discarded. In accordance with my invention, the whole sheet is evenly plated and this waste is eliminated. By passing the sheets through the tank in a horizontal position, the cumbersome overhead conveyors used to carry suspended sheets through the plating tank are also eliminated. The size of the plating tank, in accordance with my invention, may be very substantially reduced, thus-requiring a lesser amount of the expensive electrolyte.

The mounting of the anodes, guides, and agitating mechanism from the cover of the tank greatly facilitates any repairs and replacements which may be necessary. To install afresh anode in place of a .used one, the cover or other member carrying the anodes may be lifted out of the tank, and the replacement effected without removing or interfering with the electrolyte or the other parts of the tank. If desired, however, these members may be fixed to the tank or mounted in any other appropriate manner.

Many modifications of the apparatus shown in the drawings may be made without departing from the scope of my invention. Any number of anodes may be employedand they may be arranged in other ways. Although the rubber rolls 44 are not necessary to the operation of the process, they remove any gas sticking to the sheet, which otherwise seriously hinders the plating action. Additional guide members and/or gas removing members may be employed in the tank, and these members do not need to be rolls. For example, a.fixed plate, or pair of plates, may be employed between the anodes, set at an angle to assist in guiding the leading edge of the sheet 55 through the tank.

Although my invention has been described in connection with the electro-plating of metals for which it is especially useful, it may also be adopted to other treatments of sheet material with a liquid, such as the pickling of metal sheets or strip.

One arrangement for the continuous treatment of sheet metal by a-series of processing treatments is illustrated in Fig. 5. In this apparatus a suction operated swivel arm 65 picks up sheets one at a time from the pile 66 and deposits them on thecontinuously moving conveyor 61. The sheets are moved forward by the conveyor 61 to the feed rolls 68 which push the sheet into the pickling tank 69, through a stuffing box I0, similar to stuffing box i2. As the sheets emerge through a similar stufiing box, they are passed by the feed rolls II into a second tank I2'in which they are washed in any suitable manner to remove the pickling fluid and prepare them for electroplating. Guide rolls similar to those described for the plating tank may be employed in the pickling and washing apparatus, '13 and M are plating tanks, such as the tank Ill, arranged in tandem. The sheets may thus be plated with first one metal and then another, or may be given a two step plating with the same metal. Each of these tanks may be equipped with pneumatic stufiing boxes, troughs I5, and gas outlets it, in accordance with my invention. I

As the plated sheets emerge from tank I4, they are still moist with electrolyte and require drying and finishing. Feed rolls 'II, push the sheets into the chamber I8 for such a treatment and pullerv rolls I9 remove the sheets from this chamber. One treatment which I have found satisfactory for plated metal, especially a plating of the softer metals such as tin, zinc, copper and thelike, is a bufiing treatment with a mixture of a finely divided drying agent and a bufiing agent.

Sawdust is economically advantageous and is. very suitable as a drying agent; one suitable bumng agent for softer metals is finely divided calcium carbonate, such as precipitated chalk of about 200 mesh or finer. Chamber I8 may be substantially filled with a mixture of about 80 to 98% sawdust and about 20-2% chalk; for example, 95% sawdust mixed with chalk by weight. A plurality of bumng rolls 80 may be operated within chamber I8 at a peripheral speed substantially greater than the speed. of the sheet being treated. Rolls 86 are preferably soft and may be made of suitable buifing material such as cloth orfelt. To recirculate the bumng and drying mixture and prevent its becoming saturated with moisture, the material may be withdrawn from the lower part of chamber III by a screw conveyor 8|, heated by suitable means (not shown) and. returned to the upper part of chamber I8 by the screw conveyor 82. Guide rolls 83, or other suitable device, maybe employed to prevent the bufiing and drying material from flowing out of the chamber with the dried and cleaned sheets. The finished sheets are finally deposited .in a stack on table 84 by puller rolls I9.

The apparatus of Fig. 5 is especially arranged to avoid the necessity of touching the sheets with the fingers before, after, or during the processing treatments. Finger marks are very objectionable inasmuch as the metal plated over them very readily cracks and peels on. Its adhesion is very poor. The arrangement illustrated is designed particularly for treating individual sheets although it is equally capable of treating a continuous strip of material. The speed at which all of the feed rolls are driven is preferably substantially synchronized.

For treating strip, the apparatus may be somewhat simplified by substituting a feed roll for conveyor 61, a driven winding roll for table 84, and omitting the individual pairs of feed and guide rolls. Onepair of feed rolls or other suitable electric contact means may be employed however between the electro-plating tanks.

By the use of the term sheet in the foregoing description and in the claims is meant sheeted material of any size or shape including sheet, plate, andstrip material. v

The term stock as used in the specification and claims is intended to include sheet materials and also other forms such as wire, rods, bars, strip sheeting and the like.

I claim:

1. Means for sealing an aperture in the wall of a tank comprising a plurality of pneumatic containers arranged in contact with each other across the aperture to close the same but adapted to be forced apart by metal stock passed therebetween.

2. A seal for an aperture in a substantially vertical wall of a metal treating tank adapted to contain a liquid comprising means filling said aperture to prevent escape of liquid therethrough, said means including readily deformable walls held in contact with each other by pneumatic pressure but capable of being forced apart by metal stock passed therebetween.

3. Sealing apparatus for an aperture in the wall of a tank through which metal stock may be passed directly intothe tank comprising means substantially filling and sealing said aperture, said means including at least one pneumatic container having a wall formed of resilient material adapted to be held in contact throughout a substantial portion of its surface with a sheet of resilient material but capable of being forced away from said sheet and of being deformed to conform to the shapeof metal stock passed between said wall and sheet.

4. Means for sealing an aperture in the wall of a tank as defined in claim 1 in which the pneumatic containers are substantially L-shaped in cross-section and are removably held within said aperture.

5. Means for sealing an aperture in the wall of a tank as defined in claim 1 in which the pneumatic containers have walls engaging irregular fixed surfaces surrounding said aperture. ton hold said containers in place within said aper- HENRY CSANYI. 

